


He Hung The Stars

by Ga_Peach



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Suicide, I’m sorry, M/M, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Zombie Apocalypse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-12
Updated: 2019-06-16
Packaged: 2019-11-16 00:34:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18083951
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ga_Peach/pseuds/Ga_Peach
Summary: A trickle of red blood gushed from Eiji’s side, painting his shirt a deadly crimson color, a stark contrast against the white fabric.“Ash…” Eiji said in pain, trying desperately not to pass out… or throw up. He leaned in Ash’s arms for support and clutched the red sweatshirt Ash wore with trembling hands.So many questions crossed through Ash’s mind, thoughts swirled through his head, making his heart race. Through all this chaos, he almost couldn’t hear what Eiji whispered. It was so quiet, Ash thought that maybe he had imagined it, but then Eiji repeated it, a little bit louder, and this time, there was no denying what was said.“Ash… they bit me.”





	1. Dawn

       Ash breathed in deeply through his nose. Sweet, soft scents of lavender and coconut spread throughout the room, filling Ash with a feeling of calmness. Slowly, he opened his eyes and stared up in shock at Eiji, who hovered slightly above him. His cheeks were flushed, his hair was still a mess, and a mischievous smile was plastered on his face. Excitement danced across his eyes, and Ash was certain that Eiji had something planned.

 

      “Good morning, Aslan!” He whispered, giggling at Ash’s dumbfounded expression. It wasn’t often people used his real name _“Aslan”_ , but he honestly didn’t mind when it came to Eiji. He didn’t mind a lot of things when it came to Eiji.

 

      Sitting up, Ash stifled a yawn, before looking back over to where Eiji stood, and asking the question that lingered in the air.

 

      “What are you up to?” Eiji only smiled and ran a hand through his silky raven black hair, letting it fall in tufts on his forehead.

 

      “You’ll see in a little bit!” He teased. “Now get dressed and meet me in the kitchen.” And with that, Eiji turned on his heel and walked out of their room, not giving Ash the opportunity to ask any more questions.

 

      Ash threw on some jeans, a white t-shirt, and a red hoodie. He tucked his favorite gun into his pocket and swiftly combed through his hair, tying it into a small ponytail in the back. It had been a while since he’d gotten a haircut, and he wanted all of his hair out of his face. Ash then proceeded to walk out of the bathroom, until he turned back around and sprayed a little bit of cologne on himself. It had been a few days since he’d gotten a shower, and it wouldn’t hurt to smell nice. At least, that’s what he told himself.

 

      When he finally made it to the kitchen, Eiji was sitting at the table, holding a camera Ash had once picked up at an abandoned department store about a year ago. Eiji used to be a photographer and Ash insisted that he continue his love for taking photos, even if there wasn’t much time to do so.

 

      Eiji was dressed in a white t-shirt with a light pink flannel that was draped around his shoulders. His hair was styled in its usual soft look, which framed his dark chocolate brown eyes. When Ash entered the room, those eyes focused on him and brightened up the whole kitchen in mere seconds.

 

       “Are you ready?” Eiji asked, and Ash nodded, eager to find out what the boy had planned for the day. It was far too early for most activities, and the rest of the gang didn’t seem to know of his and Eiji’s outing so of course, Ash was curious.

 

       Eiji stood up and led Ash to the door that he closed gently, making sure to be quiet enough so as not to alert the others to their exit. Ash followed silently as Eiji led him down the stairs into the abandoned streets of New York City where the sun was just about to rise.

 

       They walked down the streets to an abandoned building where they quickly climbed up to the roof and Ash finally started to understand the reason for their early departure.

 

       “Look.” Eiji whispered. The sun was just beginning to rise and the sky was colored lovely shades of yellow, pink, and orange, all blending together to make a spectacular picture. Dawn had always reminded Ash of his mother

 

       She would always say that Ash was her sunshine and that she named him Aslan because of that. He had loved her with all of his heart, and when he lost her, he saw the light of the world around him fade as his mother’s body grew colder and colder. He had been her Aslan. Her Dawn.

 

       Ash found himself staring and admiring the beauty of the scene, completely lost in his thoughts until the sound of a camera clicking broke him from his daze.

 

       He turned around to find Eiji with his camera held up to his face, smiling gently to himself before letting the camera rest around his neck.

 

       “Sorry…” He apologized quickly, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “I just, thought it would make a nice picture and I didn’t think of-“ Ash interrupted Eiji’s speil by taking one of the Japanese boy’s hands, and holding it tight.

 

       “It’s alright, I don’t mind having my picture taken.” Ash whispered, and rather than this being a lie he’d tell as to not make a huge deal of his preferences, he said every word truthfully. Ash knew Eiji would never do anything to hurt him, and in turn Ash would never do anything to hurt Eiji.

 

       Letting out a sigh of relief, Eiji turned back to the sunset, watching as the sun rose into the sky, lighting the city with a brilliant glow. Ash let himself enjoy the moment as he stroked Eiji’s hand with his thumb and as Eiji ever so gently laid his head against the taller boy’s shoulder.

 

       Ash would never admit it, but in the moment, he felt true happiness. That had been foreign to him for so long, he almost forgot what it felt like. But as the sun rose into the sky on that cool summer morning, he let the peacefulness of the moment seep deep into his bones, feeling the familiar ache of his heart, that he thought he’d lost long ago.  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaaa! I’m finally writing :) This is my second attempt at writing this fic and hopefully I can stick to writing it haha! This AU was actually thought up by @Serya_Chan and @Sass_Lona on twitter, so please go check out their work ! I hope you enjoy this story and if you liked it feel free to leave kudos or a comment letting me know!


	2. Bite

       Eiji regretted not becoming a professional photographer. Of course now, it wouldn’t be a much of a profession, as more than a fourth of the population had been wiped out and nearly all states in the U.S. were evacuated.

       Sometimes Eiji couldn’t believe that this was reality and that he was still alive amongst the chaos of the apocalypse. He wondered what would have happened if he hadn’t found Ash and Shorter and Skip, what would have happened if Ibe had not brought him to America. He didn’t like to entertain the thought much.

       However, on days like this, Eiji couldn’t help but marvel at how beautiful New York City was, even as it crumbled to dust. After a few moments of quiet reflection, Eiji hurried up the stairs of an abandoned parking garage. Sunrise was approaching quickly, and he didn’t want to miss precious moments he could capture.

       As Eiji reached the third floor, he heard a noise coming from the end of the deck. It was very faint, and it could have just been his imagination, but Eiji was sure that he had heard something.

       “Hello?” Eiji called out, hesitantly walking towards through the doorway that led out to the deck. He heard the noise again, a bit louder this time. It almost sounded like footsteps, but they were to sporadic to be a large animal like a dog or a cat. “H-Hello?” He said again, cupping his hands around his mouth to make his sound travel faster. As Eiji walked the floor, he scanned the area, looking for any sign of a living organism that had found its way into the building.

       Finally, Eiji found the source of the noise. A small bird was nestled in the corner of a wall, frantically pacing back and forth. Eiji bent down in front of it, reaching out to console the poor creature.

       “Oh you poor thing,” Eiji whispered to the animal, “how did you get up here?” He picked up the bird and held it in his hands, stroking its feathers gently to comfort it. It was shaking and it’s bright blue feathers were stained by blood. But before Eiji could wonder how the bird got blood on its feathers, or how it had survived this long without food and shelter, a hard object hit him over the head and everything went black.

 

     ————————————————————————

 

       Ash woke up to the familiar scent of lavender and coconut and he eagerly opened his eyes, hoping to see the raven haired boy he had been spending all of his time with next to him. He was surprised to find that his room was empty. Ash sat up and scanned the room, looking for traces of Eiji’s presence, but found nothing.

       Warily, he crept into the bathroom, wondering if Eiji had hopped into the shower, but still, he was nowhere to be seen. Ash let out a sigh of either relief or disappointment and continued on through his daily routine. He took a shower, brushed his teeth, dried his hair, and even got dressed without any interruption from Eiji or the gang.

       Once he left his room, he expected to see Eiji sitting on the couch or even cooking breakfast, but again, Ash couldn’t sense Eiji’s presence. He made his way to Shorter, who was asleep on the couch. After waking him up and scolding him for sleeping in so late, Ash asked the question that had been lingering in his head all morning.

       “Where’s Eiji?” Shorter blinked and sat up.

       “I don’t know.” He mumbled, pulling the blankets that Ash had thrown on the floor back over himself.

       Ash scoffed, “What do you mean, ‘I don’t know’? You’ve been out here all morning, surely you’ve seen him.”

       Shorter sighed and sat up, rubbing his eyes in an effort to wake himself up.  
“I think I might have heard someone leave this morning..?” Shorter yawned and ran his hands through his hair, which was scattered into many different directions.

       Ash’s eyes grew wide. “You let him leave the apartment by himself?” Panic immediately engulfed Ash. Thoughts of what Eiji could be going through swirled around his head, each one worse than the last. Shorter grabbed Ash, bringing the blonde back to reality.

       “Dude, he’s probably fine. Worse case scenario he missed golden hour and didn’t get the pictures he wanted.” Shorter then laid back and fluffed his pillow before returning to sleep. Ash sighed. Shorter was probably right. Eiji’s an adult, and he’s beyond capable of going out alone.

      Ash took a seat on the recliner and leaned his head back. The sun had been up for nearly 15 minutes, so Eiji should have been on his way back. Ash waited as five minutes passed by. Those five minutes turned into seven minutes, to ten minutes, into nearly 15 minutes. Now Ash had a reason to be worried. He grabbed his coat and hurried out of the apartment, not even bothering to tell Shorter.

       Ash stepped out onto the empty street, looking all around for any sign of raven black hair.

       Ash searched two buildings before he finally made it to the parking garage Eiji was in. He sprinted up the first flight of stairs and searched the entire deck.

      Nothing.

      He climbed up the second flight and explored for any trace of Eiji he could find. Still, he wasn’t to be seen. He walked up the next flight, tired and dissatisfied with his efforts to find Eiji. He reluctantly walked through the hallway and called out into the dark garage.

       “Hello? Anybody here?” He waited a few moments for a response, but was only met with silence. Letting out an aggravated grunt, he turned on his heel and began to storm out of the building, but a sound made him walk back into the room. He scanned the deck again for movement, but the darkness made it hard to see anything.

       He walked forward a few more steps and tripped over an object on the floor, nearly falling on it. Gingerly, he picked it up to inspect it. It was a camera. The screen was cracked and it looked as though it had been thrown across the room or at the wall due to the extensive damage.

       Walking into the light, Ash took a closer look at the camera and when realization hit him, he froze. Everything around him began to spin and he felt as though he might throw up.

       Ash ran into the deck, searching for Eiji and calling out desperately for him. Finally, after minutes of frantic searching, Ash found Eiji. He was laying in the floor, barely conscious, and he was bleeding profusely.

       “Eiji!” He screamed, diving down on the ground to help the boy up. Eiji’s eyes fluttered open, barely staying up long enough to recognize Ash.

       “Ash.” Eiji breathed. He smiled and leaned into the embrace, wincing slightly as he moved.

       A trickle of red blood gushed from Eiji’s side, painting his shirt a deadly crimson color, a stark contrast against the white fabric. The blood spread from Eiji’s shirt to Ash’s jeans, but Ash didn’t care. How could he? He was watching one of the most important people in his life die in front of him.

       “Ash…” Eiji whispered again in pain, trying desperately not to pass out, or throw up. He leaned in Ash’s arms for support and clutched the red sweatshirt the blonde wore with trembling hands.

       So many questions crossed through Ash’s mind, thoughts swirled through his head, making his heart race. Through all this chaos, he almost couldn’t hear what Eiji whispered. It was so quiet Ash thought that he might have just imagined it, but then Eiji repeated it, a little bit louder, and this time, there was no denying what he had heard.

       “Ash… they bit me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMGGG I FINALLY WROTE!! I have literally no excuse for not updating this fic since November.... LAST YEAR. I was actually considering orphaning this fic, but I stuck it out and finished the second chapter!! If you liked this chapter and want to read more of this fic please feel free to leave a comment letting me know! Kudos are always appreciated 💛 I’ll try to update as soon as I can now that it’s summer, but no promises haha! Thank you for reading! Until next chapter...


	3. Dusk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Eiji?” Ash called. Eiji immediately looked up to meet Jade eyes. They were full of worry. “Are you okay? You’ve got that look.”
> 
> “What look?” Eiji really needed to work on being more transparent. He wore his heart on his sleeve, and he would need to change that to survive in this world.
> 
> “You just… look like you’ve got a lot on your mind is all.” Ash looked at Eiji and smiled, and this time, it wasn’t a smile of pity. It was a real smile that warmed Eiji’s heart and sent butterflies through his stomach. Eiji could feel his cheeks heat up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> before you read.... lemme jut say.......... i’m so fucking sorry for what you’re about to read :)

          Eiji felt fragile. Ever since he had gotten hurt, everyone around him seemed timid to touch him, as if he might fall apart at the seams if they didn't handle him with care. They almost seemed scared to even talk to him out of fear that they might say something they shouldn't. Although Eiji knew they did all this out of care, and that they would never purposely make him feel so weak, it was extremely frustrating. Especially considering he was bedridden. He had no one to talk to and nothing to do but stare longingly out the window or scan the room for the hundredth time.  


         Because of all the time Eiji spent in the bare room, he had become very well acquainted with its pale beige walls and scarce furnishings. During the time he spent there, he got to know every inch of the room, much like a prisoner comes to know his cell. He knew each crack in the ceiling, each stain in the carpet, and each hole in the wall personally, as they were his only friends other than the few visitors he got.  


         Ash visited most often. He would knock lightly on the door and wait for Eiji to allow him in before he slowly crept into the room. There were dark circles under his eyes, and his hair was greasy, like he hadn't showered recently. Eiji couldn't help but wonder if this situation had been just as hard on Ash as it had been on him. Ash kept their conversations lighthearted, never mentioning his condition or how they were going to treat it, but Eiji already knew that it would be a complete waste even trying to treat a zombie bite. Once you've been bitten, you don't recover. You rot to death slowly and painfully; that is, unless you manage to find a cure. Both Ash and Eiji knew that there was a low chance of that happening, so they respectfully didn't bring it up.  


         Instead he heard lots of ‘you’re looking so much better!’ and ‘you should have seen yourself a week ago, I had a heart attack!’. All of these statements were given with a pitiful smile that made Eiji even sadder than the mere thought of death.

         

         Shorter also visited him every once in a while. Eiji appreciated his company, even though he could tell that he only came because Ash told him to. It made him feel like a child, constantly being checked on and treated with gentle care. While he appreciated all that Ash and Shorter did for him, he was anxious to get out of the bed, to cook and to go back to his normal schedule. However, Eiji knew that he would never fully be able to go back to his old ways.  
  
         Eiji stared out the window at the stars in the sky. They were shimmering and bright, a beautiful contrast to the dark blue sky. If the city beneath it hadn't been crumbling to pieces, Eiji could almost imagine that there was no apocalypse. But alas, there was no escape from the future.  
  
         The turning of the doorknob startled Eiji out of his thoughts and brought him back to reality. After entering the room, Ash closed the door silently and sat down in a chair next to Eiji’s bed. The room was silent for a few unsettling moments until Ash cleared his throat.  
  
         “How are you feeling?” He asked. Eiji shrugged.  
  
         “The same as yesterday and the day before.” A bitter smile returned to his face. Ash frowned, unhappy with the answer.  
  
         “I’m doing better.” Eiji clarified, reaching to touch Ash’s hand. They stayed like that for a few minutes, Ash holding Eiji’s hand, gently rubbing his thumb over it. Ash seemed deep in his thoughts, and Eiji knew contact like this helped the blonde with his troubles.  
  
         Eiji’s mind drifted to the events of the last week. It seemed like forever ago that he had woken up on the cold concrete to see the dark shadow of a zombie staggering toward him. The wound Eiji had on his side stung as he thought of it, and he cleared his mind.  
  
         Eiji had replayed every detail of what happened as clearly as he could in his mind, and the only thing he didn’t remember was how he got the wound on his head. In his head, Eiji retracted his steps, hoping to remember something more, but it was always the same. He heard a noise, he found the bird, he reached out to it, and suddenly he was hit on the head with a hard object and everything went dark. What could have done that to him? Or rather, who?  


         “Eiji?” Ash called. Eiji immediately looked up to meet Jade eyes. They were full of worry. “Are you okay? You’ve got that look.”  
  
         “What look?” Eiji really needed to work on being more transparent. He wore his heart on his sleeve, and he would need to change that to survive in this world.  
  
         “You just… look like you’ve got a lot on your mind is all.” Ash looked at Eiji and smiled, and this time, it wasn’t a smile of pity. It was a real smile that warmed Eiji’s heart and sent butterflies through his stomach. Eiji could feel his cheeks heat up.  
  
         “Oh.” Eiji responded plainly. He hoped that the darkness of the night was enough to hide his blush. How was it that all it took was one look from Ash to get such a reaction out of him? Eiji asked this question often to himself, but he never quite answered it, because he was afraid of the answer he would get. So instead, he decided to let it remain a question. Now, Eiji didn't have much time left, and it would be a lot harder to remain ignorant to all that his heart told him.  


  


           ———————————————————  
  


         As Ash sat on the stairs of the apartment building, he looked up to the night sky and closed his eyes. The past week was full of so much stress that he wasn't even sure what to do with himself. Just when Ash believed he had found a sort of contentment in his life, it was already fading away. Hot tears pricked at his eyes. Of course he would lose Eiji. He told himself not to get too attached, and here he was… ready to throw away everything for a dying man.  
  
        Ash reached in his pocket to take out a cigarette, only to realize he had no way to light it.  
  
        “That bad huh?” A voice behind him spoke. Shorter sat down beside him on the steps and handed Ash a lighter. The blonde gladly took it. He took a deep breath and blew out, smoke clouding the air in front of him. They sat together in a long silence. Ash handed Shorter back his lighter. It was purple and covered with worn stickers and markings.  
  
         Ash coughed. “Thanks.”  
  
        “No problem.”  


         They were back to the silence, but as quickly as it had started, it ended. Ash stared at the ground and put a hand on his head.

 

         “Goddamnit.” Ash choked out. He could feel the tears in his eyes threatening to spill over. Everything was hitting him at once, all the feelings he had stuffed deep down inside of him were bubbling up to the surface.  Ash threw his cigarette down and held his face in his hands. “God-fucking-damnit!”

 

         Tears were dripping down his face now, dropping down on the pavement and making small wet circles where they fell. Ash looked at Shorter beside him. “It's all fucking stupid and unfair!” He yelled.  
  
         Shorter stayed silent and put a hand on Ash’s back as the sobs racked through him. Shorter was one of the only people he could be so vulnerable in front of. Ash almost never cried, but when he did, it all came at once.  


         “I know.” He told Ash. “I know how much he means to you.” Ash leaned into Shorter as he cried, finding comfort in their closeness.  
  
         “I just…” Ash tried to say between sobs, “I just wish I never fell in love with him in the first place.”          

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *clown shoes squeaking* eye- 
> 
>  
> 
> .......
> 
> i have nothing to say for myself. i’m sorry.
> 
> anyway!!! what do you think happened to Eiji? Was it merely a coincidence he was bit? lemme know what you think in the comments :)) if you enjoyed the chapter feel free to leave a comment for that too or leave some kudos! if you even want to yell at me that’s fine too! (just be gentle with me i’m baby ;-;) 
> 
> thanks for reading! see you next (hopefully less angsty) chapter!

**Author's Note:**

> aaaaa! I’m finally writing :) This is my second attempt at writing this fic and hopefully I can stick to writing it haha! This AU was actually thought up by @Serya_Chan and @Sass_Lona on twitter, so please go check out their work ! I hope you enjoy this story and if you liked it feel free to leave kudos or a comment letting me know!


End file.
